Paintbrushes and hammers

Haven't been able to do any blogging for a couple of days as my optical mouse, that has been behaving very erratically for the last few days, finally gave up - and I haven't a clue which keys to press instead! However, this afternoon before work I went and bought a cheap mouse with a ball, and tonight when I got home I plugged it in! Great! It works!

So, it dawns on me that I haven't shown you the picture Joe did at this week's art class! It's of a loch on Rannoch Moor with some of the western mountains in the background. My dad would have been able to name them, but I can't!

My own picture was too bold in colour again, but at last I think I have discovered how to get the paints to lighten up! I explained to Joe that I didn't know how to use watercolour paints, as I'd not even used them at school all those years ago - though I suppose I must have, when I think back to the paint boxes we used to have! So he showed me how to water them down! I'll have to play around with the paints and water till I get the idea! Anyway, I'm still not showing you my attempts! One day, maybe!

I suppose I could show you a drawing though! I was reasonably pleased with it - though Joe has pointed out a couple of weak spots that I haven't yet corrected - like the sheep in the foreground being too small for the perspective! He's right! I must draw them again - larger! The pic is of a hill near Peebles with the name of Brown Dod! A dod, in Scots, is a lump of something - anything - so this could be the origin of the name of this hill! It is a bit of a lump!

Then there is the ongoing saga of the Co-op refit! It has been a total nightmare as we try to work round workmen working around us! Stock has had to be cleared from shelves and put away till new shelves were put up, and gradually things have been moved around, sometimes to temporary shelf units and sometimes into boxes and moved into the store room or piled high in boxes on the shop floor where there was no chance of being able to find them. Old shelf units have been ripped out and new ones put in place....

Though a lot of the major work has gone on during the night, customers are generally saying to us that they think the shop should have been shut during the work and we agree, but it wasn't up to us! However they are also enjoying coming in each day to see what changes have been made since their last visit! I have to say that the stress levels of the staff are pretty much off the scale right now, and that includes me - who everyone reckons is totally unflappable! I have been the one to take the flak from customers who can't accept that we are being turned upside down and haven't got access to certain stock at certain times.

The street outside the shop when I left at 11p.m. one night! There's a redundant chiller unit sitting outside on the pavement, and one of the shop doors is lying on its side, to be replaced later - and still folk were coming in asking if we were open!!!

One woman, late one evening, looking for a bottle of vodka - Scotland's new national drink - was furious when I explained to her that the shelves on which we generally display the spirits were to be replaced that night, so we had had to move the bottles to boxes that were piled up at the side of the counter. I explained that I could not possibly physically lift the boxes to look for the vodka (which of course was bound to be at the bottom of the pile), and was treated to a tirade that she was the customer and therefore I had to sell it to her. In the end she left in a huff without her vodka, having forbidden her friend even to buy a bottle of beer that actually was on a shelf in one of the new chillers! They would go elsewhere! They left with the second girl raising her eyes to heaven to me in an apology for her friend! She wasn't the only awkward so-and-so! They came thick and fast! Saying that though, most people were very understanding of the problems we were facing and accepted that for once they might not get exactly what they were looking for. They were prepared to laugh, joke and sympathise with us over what we are going through! Now most of the shop floor work has been finished and it is only cosmetic stuff to be done before they start work on the office and toilets next week! Now that is going to be another big overnight job! Thank goodness I don't have to do an out of hours shift! I forgot to take photos tonight but I'll take some on Sunday morning - my one early shift of the week! I have the day off tomorrow but may drop in to the shop sometime just to see what was done overnight tonight! Nothing more will be done till Monday night now though! The lads don't work weekends!

Well, I've been burning the midnight oil again and need my sleep! Night night!

Talk again soon!